Be a part of EarthFest 2010 on April 17, 2010 from 10am - 5pm at Pellissippi State Technical Community College.
 
"Growing a Greener Tennessee," is the theme for this year's EarthFest. Speakers and vendors will offer ideas and products you can take home to make positive changes in your lifestyle that will promote a cleaner and greener TN. At this year's EarthFest, participants will have the opportunity to take part in demonstrations and workshops on topics including home gardening, water catchment systems, rain gardens, irrigation, composting, native plants and so much more. Check out the EarthFest website www.knox-earthfest.org for a list of speakers and visit the Green Living tent.

Join us for the EarthFest 2010, Saturday, April 17 from 10am to 6pm at Pellissippi State Technical Community College in Knoxville, TN. As always, EarthFest is FREE and the parking is FREE. EarthFest is a "Zero-Waste Event". Which means exhibitors and food vendors are required to control the types of materials they sell or distribute. EarthFest organizers, sponsors and volunteers will provide recycling opportunities for everything distributed at the event and there will be no trash cans on site. Last year at EarthFest '09 with over 11 thousand attendees, we recycled or composted over 1,520 lb. of materials and only 25 lb. of trash went to the landfill. Incredible numbers for such a big event.

Carpool (with 3 or more people of driving age), bike or walk to EarthFest. You'll be green and save some green - and have a chance to win some great prizes! More details to come at www.knox-earthfest.org.

The EarthFest Youth Environmental Learning Area and Children's Hospital are sponsoring a free bicycle helmet safety check on site. Bring your child's safety helmet and trained professionals will check the fit of the helmet plus knee and elbow pads. Other youth area events include: face painting, environmental crafts and games, water bug exhibit, healthy snacks from Earth Fare and more. The children's area has been expanded and activities for all ages will keep your children entertained for hours, plus they will learn about the environment and how to live a clean and green life.

Other on site events include City of Knoxville thermometer exchange and KPD unwanted medication collection, KUB compact fluorescent light bulb exchange (limited supply), food vendors, environmental exhibitors, art and craft vendors, mercury thermometer exchange, clean fuels vehicles, cell phone recycling, rain barrel sale, frisbee golf, corn hole game, and more. The rain barrel sale will be held from 10am-2pm. Folks can order them on line by visiting: http://www.rainbarrelprogram.org/water-quality-forum. Additional barrels will be available on a first come first served basis.

Each family that brings in at least 10 plastic grocery bags or 10 plastic bottles to the Keep Knoxville Beautiful booth will receive one large reusable earth-friendly cloth shopping bag. Also, the first 600 visitors to the Keep Knoxville Beautiful booth will receive a FREE tree seedling.

One of the on-site activities at this year's EarthFest will be free disc golf demonstrations by volunteers from the Knoxville Disc Golf Club. These volunteers will set up a small course to provide attendees with the chance to learn the techniques of throwing and understand more about the rules of this sport. The club will provide discs for attendees to use on-site as well as information on local disc golf courses. Players in this club are some of the local experts, so come learn some disc skills from the best! Demos will be given during the entire time of the event!

Knoxville's EarthFest has truly become an annual event attracting exhibitors and attendees from around the region. The event draws local organizations like the East Tennessee Clean Fuels Coalition, Knoxville Recycling Coalition, the Knox County Bee Keepers Association, Beardsley Community Farm, Keep Knoxville Beautiful, Keep Blount Beautiful and combines them with state agencies and organizations such as the National Parks Conservation Association, Big Brothers and Big Sisters of the Tennessee Valley, the Tennessee Dept. of Environment and Conservation, and the Tennessee Clean Water Network. Through terrific media exposure, great local entertainment and music on stage, a kids' learning area, and hundreds of exhibitors, EarthFest has created an ongoing community event with something for everyone which is an asset to Knoxville and East Tennessee.

Major sponsors of EarthFest this year are the City of Knoxville Public Service Department, Knox County Solid Waste, WATE-6, Alcoa, Keep Knoxville Beautiful, Earth Fare, Green Mountain Coffee, WJXB B97.5, Event Rentals, Barley's, WUTK 90.3, Waste Connections, TVA Employees Federal Credit Union, Knox County Storm Water Management, WUOT 91.9, Natural Awakenings, Rock-Tenn Recycling, UT Make Orange Green, Keep Blount Beautiful, SP Recycling, Evermore Recycling, KUB, ET Clean Fuels, the Water Quality Forum, Knoxville Recycling Coalition, Goodwill, Knoxville Tourism and Sports, AmeriCorps, TVA,and Pellissippi State Technical Community College.

For more up-to-date information about EarthFest visit www.knox-earthfest.org.